The Jewel of Gresham Green - Lawana Blackwell

Finally, the long-awaited Jewel of Gresham Green! I, and many other readers, was painfully reluctant to leave Gresham after the Dowry of Miss Lydia Clark, simply because there were so many stories left to tell. Blackwell has created literary gold in Gresham - it's just such a wonderfully believable place with such fascinating characters, nobody wants to leave!

Picking up over ten years after Dowry left off, this novel begins, as the first one did, in London, with a widow who fears for the future of her children. This time it's Jewel Libby, a factory worker who is frightened of a local thug who shows an inappropriate interest in her young daughter. Kindhearted Noelle Sommerville, now a respectable vicar's wife, sends Jewel and little Becky to Gresham, to be helped by the Phelps family.

Julia Hollis and Andrew Phelps have raised their children. Elizabeth, Laurel and Grace are happily married. Phillip is a prominent London surgeon, but unhappily married to a woman who does not love him, and openly dislikes his family. Independent Aleda has sequestered herself in a cottage in the woods, determined to advance her writing career.

Though she's come for assistance, Jewel turns the tables and ends up assisting others, including the Phelps family and the ailing, grieving Squire Bartley, who has not been the same since the death of his beloved wife. She even attracts the attention of an unlikely suitor.

Gresham, however, is in trouble. The squire's illness puts the whole town in jeopardy. Donald Gibbs, the selfish, cruel nephew who is his sole beneficiary has plans that could leave Gresham in ruins. Andrew's health worsens, and Phillip must come home to help, but that puts even more of a strain on his already-troubled marriage.

In spite of the happy title, The Jewel of Gresham Green is a darker novel than its predecessors. Within the first few pages, a paedophile is introduced. Though adultery is referenced in the other texts, it's dealt with more thoroughly here, as a character tempted by that issue is dealt with in a sympathetic manner. There are also references to something rarely discussed in any Victorian literature I've ever read - homosexuality. It's presented with impressive delicacy - the exploits of Donald Gibbs are never overtly described, and his partner is never referred to by gender, or a specifically masculine or feminine name. Though there appears to have been an incident of homosexual violence, it's also woven subtly through the plot. I doubt some more innocent readers will catch on at all, which was likely Blackwell's intent.

I like the darkness. Gresham is less innocent than it once was, but such is the nature of life, and Blackwell never fails to show the joyous side of things, as well as the not-so-joyous. The part I liked the least about this whole novel was the fact that it's a finale. Though I've read no interviews to the effect, this novel makes it very obvious that this is the last time she'll be taking us back to Gresham. Nonetheless, Gresham is left in a satisfying place. The story is complete.

Highly Recommended.

The Dowry of Miss Lydia Clark - Lawana Blackwell

The third in the Gresham Chronicles, The Dowry of Miss Lydia Clark brings back a host of the previous Gresham characters, as well as a few surprising new ones. Picking up sixteen months after The Courtship of the Vicar's Daughter ends, Dowry continues the story of Julia Hollis and Vicar Andrew Phelps, now happily married. This time, the family takes a backseat in the narrative, as other characters are brought to the forefront.

Shy, awkward Jacob Pitney is content in his career as an archaeologist, but far less so with his personal life. His attempts to court Eugenia Rawlins, a local romance author are continually fraught with problems, as this woman, so absorbed in the wild, melodramatic world of her characters, fails to see his true worth. To help him woo Miss Rawlins, Jacob seeks the help of Miss Lydia Clark, the local schoolteacher, who has troubles of her own.

After thirty-four years a spinster, Lydia Clark has given up on the idea of finding a mate. Suddenly, two different men are paying her attention - Ezra Towley, a boorish farmer, and Harold Sanders, a local n'er-do-well, both of whom are far more interested in her dowry than her heart. When she begins to develop feelings for Jacob Pitney, life becomes even more complicated, as he's enlisted her to help him court someone else.

Harold Sanders is determined to escape the misery of his father's farm, and sees Lydia Clark's dowry as an easy way out. However, in his attempts to win her, he changes in ways he does not expect, and embarks upon a future he'd never imagined.

Noelle Sommerville is sent to Gresham to be hidden by her lover, so that his wife will not find out about her existence. Alone and frightened of losing her one source of security, she embarks on a series of lies and manipulations, only to be confronted with an unexpected chance for redemption.

This many plotlines could make for a confusing read, but Blackwell is so incredibly skilled at weaving her stories together that it's really quite comfortable to follow. More than the others, Dowry shows a real evolution in the hearts and minds of some of the characters, particularly Noelle Sommerville and Harold Sanders. It's subtle, it's consistent, and you can easily believe that it is God's work changing these people, rather than the author's will. Highly Recommended.

The Courtship of the Vicar's Daughter - Lawana Blackwell

Victorian fiction written by a modern hand tends to go one of two ways. When it's good, it's very, very good, and when it's bad, it's VERY, VERY bad. Lawana Blackwell falls on the good side. The follow-up novel to The Widow of Larkspur Inn, The Courtship of the Vicar's Daughter picks up just weeks after the first book ends.

Newly engaged couple Julia Hollis and Vicar Andrew Phelps are busy planning their wedding, and dealing with the increasing demands of their rapidly-growing children. Andrew's daughter Elizabeth, whose heart was broken by a young rogue in Cambridge just months earlier, is slowly healing from the hurt and preparing to become engaged to another, more respectable man. Julia's eldest son Philip is on his way to boarding school.

Just as life seems settled, Jonathan Raleigh, the rogue from Cambridge, arrives in Gresham, a redeemed and reformed man, determined to win back Elizabeth's heart. He takes a job teaching the boisterous grammar school, a position to which he is ill-qualified, but it allows him to remain in Gresham. Both Andrew and Elizabeth must come to terms with their own anger, hurt, and unforgiveness. Julia, on the other hand, struggles to let go of her eldest son, whose infrequent letters from boarding school do not tell the truth of the cruelty he is experiencing there.

In the meantime, the community of Gresham is no less active than the Phelps and Hollis families. Seth Langford, recently acquitted and released from prison, arrives in Gresham with his impulsively adopted son Thomas, desiring nothing more than a quiet place to make a life for himself and Thomas. He's unfortunately chosen a home next to the town n'er-do-wells, the Sanders family. He's determined to avoild them, until Mercy Sanders falls in love with him, but must embark on an unusual and complicated plot to win his heart.

Where The Widow of Larkspur Inn focused on trusting the Lord for His care, The Courtship of the Vicar's Daughter focuses on forgiveness. Andrew and Elizabeth must forgive Jonathan. Jonathan must come to understand what it means to be forgiven. Seth Langford must forgive those who wronged him, and learn to trust the people God has placed in his path. Even Philip, who is young, is faced with a moment of forgiveness versus satisfaction.

The citizens of Gresham are every bit as colourful and delightful as they were in the first novel, and well worth visiting from time to time. For a lover of Victorian-era stories, this is highly recommended.